How're you all doing? Ze second chapter iz now open! I 'ope you enjoy!
P.S. Sorry about the long wait. My school's schedule is weird and the homework is plentiful!
Switzerland felt extremely jumpy as he sat among his fellow nations. The cat ears under his hat kept twitching traitorously, making him feel that at any moment someone would notice and rip the hat off his head. Sweat beaded his face as the after effects of the mutation and the spikes of adrenaline coursed through his small frame.
"I now call 'zis meeting to order...'zat means sit DOWN Italy!" Germany stated loudly, grabbing the Italian by the shoulder and forcing him in a seat. Italy whined in return.
"Alright, today ve'll be talking about current events and economy problems-"
"Honhon. America should 'ave no problem with zat last one, eh?" France interjected, laughing. Several others laughed as well. Even England chuckled quietly.
"Hey pervert, that's totally NOT cool! I don't have no problems with my economy!" America defended loudly.
"Well, obviously you have problems with grammar. Fix that before you try to handle the big-boy issues." England retorted sourly.
Switzerland watched this argument with mild detachment, focusing more and more on the furry additions on his head. They kept twitching as the argument got louder and more heated. He put his head in his hands. What was wrong with him? Other than the fact that he had ears, of course.
"Now really. Why do these westerners insist on acting like children? This meeting is serious!" He heard China mumble to someone.
"I do not know, onīsan. But you shourd know by now. There is no stopping them when they get started." Japan answered, equally quiet.
Switzerland looked up in annoyance and was surprised to find them on the other side of the table, about fifteen to twenty feet away, way out of a normal person's hearing range. His ears twitched again and he ended up putting his hands on his head to stop them. He leaned his head down.
Liechtenstein and Hungary exchanged a look before the young blonde leaned over in her chair and gently put her hand on Switzerland's shoulder. He jumped in surprise but did not look up.
"Big brother? Are you okay? You've been acting kind of weird..."
"I-It's nothing, Liechtenstein. I'm fine. I...just haven't been feeling the best.." Which wasn't entirely untrue, his head still hurt and his body randomly tingled in slight pain. He knew he probably had a grimacing face that gave away just how much. Liechtenstein looked at him, unconvinced at his excuse.
"Are you quite sure you're alvright? Nobody vould blame you if you left." Austria spoke up from his right, sounding concerned.
"I said I'm fine! There's nothing wrong with me!" He retorted stiffly, suddenly angry at Austria for no discernible reason. He hadn't moved from his position against the table.
"Is zhere something wrong with your head?" Austria asked, not letting up easily. He gently laid his hand on top of the Swiss man's head.
"DON'T touch me!" He growled through gritted teeth, jerking his head away from the confused Austrian.
As Austria's hand glided briefly over his ears through the beret's thin white fabric, he felt a sudden stab of intense pleasure shoot through his body, causing him to involuntarily gasp. He jumped out of his chair, the legs making a squeal of protest as they skid across the floor. The argument of the other nations ceased at once and all eyes were now on him. Most were questioning, though he noticed Scotland and Wales were wearing looks of sympathy. He quickly put on mask of indifference and slight annoyance and glared down the people in the room, despite the embarrassment that was, no doubt, creeping onto his face.
"If all you intend to do is bicker over each other the entire conference then I am wasting my time here. Come, Liechtenstein. We're leaving." He rambled the first bullshit excuse out of his head and turned on his heel. He barely heard Liechtenstein's questions over the thundering in his ears as he stormed out. As soon as the door to the conference room shut he leaned against a wall and took a deep breath to calm his pounding heart. The young blonde girl watched him for a moment before asking,
"Big Brother, are you sure you're okay? You've never done anything like that before..." Her words snapped him out of whatever he was in.
"I-I don't know. I just needed to get out of there. Maybe I am coming down with something." He sighed and smiled at her. "Come on. I already said we're leaving, so let's go. They weren't going to get anything accomplished anyway."
She nodded and smiled, accepting his explanation (much to his relief). They walked out, passing a very disgruntled Sealand on their way. Liechtenstein said "hi" as they passed, causing the young not-quite-a-nation to jerk his head up with a gasp.
"You just said hello to me." He stated redundantly. She nodded, confused, as he ran down the hall shouting things like "I'm a country now!" and "Someone talked to me!" Her look of confusion continued all the way to the car. Switzerland hid a smile.
"Why don't you drive? I don't want to accidently crash the car or something." He asked, holding his forehead to emphasize. Liechtenstein nodded eagerly. She hardly ever got to drive, despite getting her license seven months previously.
As they sped off toward home, Switzerland mulled over the disaster of a day he'd been having. As he thought about Austria touching his ears...he felt his face heat up just at the thought. Why exactly had he reacted the way he had? That intense spike of...whatever it was. He had to use all his self control not to squirm in his seat. It was as if Austria had somehow known about his, ah, unfortunate condition.
He mulled over this horrendous idea until Liechtenstein pulled into the driveway of their stately home. He got out of the car, complimenting his little sister on her driving skills as they walked to the front door. Liechtenstein opened the door and immediately sped off toward the kitchen to make her big brother something to get rid of his "illness". He smiled humorlessly, whatever I have is obviously something that can't be cured with food, he thought to himself as he walked toward the staircase.
As he reached the staircase, he suddenly felt a dizziness spread through him. He fell heavily onto the stairs with his head spinning like a top. Slowly, almost like a liquid, he felt a sharp pain ease down his spine and settle somewhere around his lower back. It stayed there and made him feel like his back was on fire. He groaned in pain and waited it out. It was another one of those transmutations, most likely, and would be over soon.
Even as the words appeared in his mind he felt the pain ebbing away. It went from a sharp stab to a dull throb. The dizziness also subsided. He stood up as quickly as his body would allow and hurried to his room, occasionally running into the wall. There was something wrong with his lower back. He could feel it. Locking his door, he walked over to the mirror attached to his closet door and quickly undressed himself down to his boxers and tank top.
There, right in the middle of his lower back, was a long furry blonde tail, complete with a white tip. It twitched as he watched in a kind of morbid fascination. He realized that he could control it if he concentrated a bit and watched it move to his directions.
A tail?! He really was turning into a cat! A fucking cat! He sat on the bed and put his head in his hands. What the hell was happening to his life?
A knock on the door bolted him out of his reverie. His sister's voice sounded muffled through the wood.
"Big brother? Are you alright? I've brought you some French Onion soup for your little "cold". Can I come in?"
He pulled the covers off the bed to make it look used and grabbed his robe in record time. He put on the robe and checked to make sure his tail and ears weren't visible.
"Yeah, one second. I was grabbing my robe." He walked over and unlocked the door. Liechtenstein stepped in with a little platter laden with food to help him "get better". He couldn't help smiling. She was the sweetest girl he knew.
"Thank you for your efforts, but I'll have you know that I'm not completely bedridden!" He said with a laugh, taking the tray from her hands and setting it on his bedside table. She giggled too before answering.
"I know, big brother. But you always work so hard, so I thought you deserved a break."
"Well, thank you kleine Schwester*. " He sat on the bed and fanned the soup.
"Oh, also, you have some visitors. A Mr. Scotland and a Mr. Wales? They said they had business to discuss, but I told them you were sick. They were so persistent that I told them to just go wait in the living room. Would you like me to get them now or send them away?" She tilted her head in question..
"Send them in! Thank you for not denying their business, Liechtenstein. It is very important." He tried with all his might to keep the relief out of his voice. He definitely had a few choice words to say to those two bastards...
"Do you want to meet them in the living room or should I bring them here?" She asked as she walked toward the door. He mulled it over for a second.
"Here is fine. I don't think they plan on being here long." He replied. She nodded and disappeared out the door.
He sighed and leaned back against the headboard. He thought over what had happened again, revisiting the moment when Austria touched him. He couldn't get it out of his mind! As he thought it over, he wondered if the sensation would always occur when someone touched his head. Gently taking off the hat, he slid his fingers over one of the silky smooth ears. A mix between a groan and a gasp forced its way out of his lips as the heated spike of pleasure went straight to his abdominal area. He snatched his hand away with a stuttering breath and quickly replaced the beret.
Right at that moment, Liechtenstein appeared with Scotland and Wales in tow. Both of their face betrayed the worry and guilt they obviously felt for him, since this whole mess was their fault. He prayed his face wasn't bright red as he stood up.
"Thank you, Liechtenstein. You can go now, I'll be okay." He said, giving her a smile that she returned before walking out. Wales whistled.
"You know, you have a really great smile! You should use it more often!" He said with a laugh. Switzerland gave him the blankest expression he could do.
"Okay, okay. Sorry." He said. "How are you doing so far? Did anything else happen?"
"Yes." Switzerland said through clenched teeth. He took off the robe and watched their expressions as his tail bobbed and weaved.
"So-ah, it's getting worse I see." Scotland said, more to himself than anyone else, it seemed.
"You could say that. Have you guys found an antidote yet? I find being a cat isn't something I want to do." The blonde asked.
"Not yet." Wales answered, "You are a very rare and vague example of a cross-species transmutation. Most people are horribly disfigured or die during the process."
Switzerland's eyes widened and Wales realized his mistake. "I mean, YOU didn't die, so obviously you're going to be fine. Death only happens to the ones who use faulty or incomplete hexes." He smiled nervously.
"You'll be alright, laddie." Scotland added helpfully.
"So, what now?" Switzerland asked in a defeated voice.
"Well, not letting anyone see what happened is an obvious plan of action. And just wait it out. The hex is timed, so it will wear out over the next few weeks."
"How long?"
"Uhhh, two months at the latest, three weeks at the earliest?" Wales answered with an obvious guess.
"All we can do now is keep ya updated and hope for the best, y'know?" Scotland said, patting him on the shoulder. Wales adjusted his jacket before they headed for the door.
"Thanks anyway." Switzerland said. They both nodded and walked out. He was pissed at what they did but he knew they were doing all they could to fix his condition.
Hopefully it didn't get any worse...
Oh...my...god...I finally finished this stupid thing! *jumps around happily* It's supposed to snow tonight, too! Everything is good! Please don't kill me for being so slow...:)